This disclosure relates to printing systems. Specifically, this disclosure and embodiments described herein relate to printing system scheduler/planner methods and systems.
Full scale and entry level production printing systems are increasingly being designed and constructed in a modular fashion for an expanding array of applications. One benefit associated with modular printing systems is they can be modified by adding modules and exchanging modules with different capabilities. These modules can include sheet feeding modules, sheet finishing modules, printing modules, fuser modules, etc.
Modular printing systems enable an end user, i.e. customer, to tailor their printing system to meet their current and predicted future requirements. However, because the end user is not always aware of alternative configurations for their existing printing system, and how a specific alternative configuration compares to their existing printing system, many times a representative or other technical person must perform an evaluation to make the necessary comparisons.
This disclosure provides methods and systems to evaluate a current modular printing system and compare performance criteria associated with the current system to one or more alternative modular printing systems.